Robert Randisi - Hey There (You with the Gun in Your Hand)

“Peter … Lawford?”

“Right.”

“Listen, Eddie, Frank and Peter, they’re-”

“This’ll have nothin’ to do with Frank, Sammy.”

“But … you’re sayin’ this is about the President, aren’t you? About Kennedy?”

“That’s right, Sammy. I think you caught JFK, maybe in the background of a photo, but you caught him doin’ somethin’ they don’t want anyone to know about.”

“What?” Sammy asked. “Takin’ a payoff? Or was it a girl?”

“I don’t know, Sammy,” I said, “but it looks like they’re killin’ to keep it quiet.”

“Jesus … so now we’ve got two pictures to worry about?”

“I don’t know about you,” I said, “but my first concern is still your picture. But can you get Peter to call me? Talk to me about the Kennedy family?”

“I can get him to call you,” he said, “but whether or not he’ll talk to you, that’s somethin’ else.”

“Let’s start with the call, Sam, as soon as possible. I’m at Harrah’s in Reno. Here’s the number.” I read it to him off the phone.

“Stay put,” he said. “Let me see if I can get ahold of him.”

I checked my watch.

“It’s got to be in two hours, Sam,” I said.

“I’ll try, Eddie.”

I hung up and looked at Jerry.

“Why two hours?” he asked. “We got more time than that.”

“Not if we stick to the plan we’ve got to get you out there while it’s still light.”

“Oh yeah, the plan,” Jerry said. “Me in that broken-down house.”

“With your trusty forty-five,” I said, “keepin’ me alive.”

“I can do that, Mr. G.”

“I hope so, Jerry.”

“But if I’m gonna do it,” he said, sitting down on one of the beds, “I better take a little nap.”

“Yeah,” I said, suddenly realizing how tired I was, “me, too.”

“Should we leave a wake-up call?”

“Naw,” I said, reclining on the other bed with my shoes on, “Sammy’s call will wake us up.”

I woke up a while later. Jerry was sitting at the table. He had his gun in his hand and was cleaning it. He had the TV on.

I sat up and he turned the set off.

“Hey, Mr. G. Just wanted ta make sure this thing would work if we needed it.”

“What time is it?”

“You was asleep for an hour and a half,” he said. “I woke up about twenty minutes ago. I checked the news. Still no word on those bodies in Vegas.”

“Good.”

I rubbed my eyes. I felt like I had slept for ten minutes.

“I’m gonna call room service for some coffee,” I said. “I know this is a silly question, but do you want something?”

“Yeah,” he said, “I could use a burger and fries.”

I looked at my watch.

“We’re going to have to get out of here in half an hour.”

“Then you better call now.”

“Right.”

I called down and asked them to put a rush on two burger platters with coffee.

“Mr. G.?” Jerry said, as I hung up.

“Yeah.”

“I got another piece.”

“Huh?”

“Another gun,” he said, “in case you want it.”

“Not … not Sammy’s gun-”

“No, no,” he said, “that’s still hid around your house in pieces.”

“If the cops show up with a search warrant are they gonna find it?” I asked.

“Naw,” he said, then added, “I don’t think.”

Did I want to carry a gun? No. I might end up shooting somebody. Wasn’t that why I had Jerry around? Well, no, not exactly, but still, if somebody had to be shot he was sure as hell gonna be better at it than I was.

“That’s okay, Jerry,” I said. “I don’t want to carry a gun.”

“Suit yerself.”

He finished cleaning his.45 by the time the food showed up. We had ten minutes to eat. For some reason, it was the best burger and fries I’d had in a long time.

When we finished eating we put on our jackets. Jerry hadn’t packed a heavy one, so I reminded him he was going to be out there for hours and it was going to get cold.

“You’re right,” he said. He put on a second shirt, then grabbed the pickle off my plate and the rest of my fries-just a few-wrapped them in a napkin and put them in his pocket.

“In case I get hungry.”

The last thing he did was slide his.45 back into his shoulder rig.

“Well,” I said, “now that you’re completely outfitted, we better get going.”

Peter Lawford hadn’t called, and Sammy hadn’t, either. That worried me, but I had to get Jerry out to that meeting place.

It was on the outskirts of town, not that long a drive at all, but once we got there it felt like we were in the middle of nowhere.

Jerry did a quick check of the two buildings-or the building-and-a-half-and pronounced us all alone.

“You sure about this, Jerry?”

“Dead sure, Mr. G. It’s the best way.”

“And if they find you out here?”

“They may not be pros, but it probably won’t surprise them that we’re bein’ careful.”

“Okay,” I said. “I’ll be back about fifteen minutes before the meet.”

“Bring a flashlight, Mr. G.,” Jerry said.

“I’ll get one from my buddy, Jim.”

“Okay,” Jerry said. “Drive careful.”

“I’ll see you later, Jerry,” I said. “Watch your back.”

“That ain’t what I’m out here for, Mr. G.,” he said. “I’m out here to watch your back.”

“Yeah, well, do me a favor and watch ’em both, huh?”

“You got it.”

I started up the car, turned it around, and headed back down the dirt road.

I was walking through Harrah’s casino when I saw her. You couldn’t miss her. The blond hair, pale skin, red mouth, all those curves-and the crowd she was drawing. It was Marilyn Monroe, all right, wearing a long-sleeved checkered shirt tucked into tight jeans. She was alone, trying to clear a path for herself to walk as people crowded in around her, trying to talk to her or touch her. I thought the look in her eyes was confused, or … kind of vacant. She also looked scared. I remembered what Frank said about the movie company having trouble with her being on time for her scenes in The Misfits .

But right now she was just trying to walk, and having a tough time of it. I could see she was on the verge of panic, so I did the only thing I could think of.

“Okay, okay, clear the way,” I shouted, wading in with my arms waving like a windmill.

Everybody turned to look at me, wondering who the hell I was. They shrunk back from me, because I looked like a madman.

“Outta the way, outta the way!” I yelled.

Marilyn looked at me, too, as I reached her and put my arm around her. Good God, but she felt good, a beautiful, solid girl who really filled out her clothes.

“Wha-who are you?” she asked. I could feel her breath on my face.

“My name’s Eddie,” I said. “I’m a friend of Frank’s. Come on!”

I pulled her along, still waving my free arm. People pulled back from my perceived authority, and I knew I had to get her out of there before she realized I was nobody.

“Are you staying here?” I asked her.

“Yes, but … I couldn’t find the elevators.”

“Stay close,” I said, and felt one of her arms go around me.

I took her to the elevators as some of the crowd started to follow us.

“… the hell is he …”

“… he think he’s doin’?”

I heard the words behind us as I pressed the button for the elevator. Luckily, the car was already on the ground floor, so the doors opened.

“In you go,” I said, giving her a gentle push. “Got your room key?”

“Oh, yes, but …”

“What floor?”

“Four.”

I leaned in and pressed four, then started to step out. She reached for me as the doors closed. Her hand caught the front of my shirt and she kissed me quickly on the cheek. I admit it, my head swam.